Burntown

A Novel

"Ashford, Vermont, might look like your typical sleepy New England college town, but to the shadowy residents who live among the remains of its abandoned mills and factories, it's known as "Burntown." Eva Sandeski, known as "Necco" on the street, has been a part of this underworld for years, ever since the night her father Miles drowned in a flood that left her and her mother Lily homeless. A respected professor, Miles was also an inventor of fantastic machines, including one so secret that the plans were said to have been stolen from Thomas Edison's workshop. According to Lily, it's this machine that got Miles murdered. Necco has always written off this claim as the fevered imaginings of a woman consumed by grief. But when Lily dies under mysterious circumstances, and Necco's boyfriend is murdered, she's convinced her mother was telling the truth. Now, on the run from the man called "Snake Eyes," Necco must rely on other Burntown outsiders to survive. There are the "fire eaters," mystical women living off the grid in a campsite on the river's edge, practicing a kind of soothsaying inspired by powerful herbs called "the devil's snuff"; there's Theo, a high school senior who is scrambling to repay the money she owes a dangerous man; and then there's Pru, the cafeteria lady with a secret life. As the lives of these misfits intersect, and as the killer from the Sandeski family's past draws ever closer, a story of edge-of-your-seat suspense begins to unfurl with classic Jennifer McMahon twists and surprises"-- Provided by publisher.

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This is a bit of an odd book. I would say it is mystery with a bit of a supernatural element to it. I wasn't sure what to make of it at first but I thought the characters were really well done and it was a suspenseful, entertaining read with a good pace. I ended up really liking it. If you like mysteries or appreciate good character relationships, I would recommend to pick this one up and try it.

Honestly, this book was terrible. I only finished it because I really liked Winter People, and wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt. Unfortunately, it was one of those books that you finish and wish you hadn't wasted time forcing yourself through it.
There were too many different concepts and ideas going on throughout the whole thing -- magic, a circus act, family relationships, love interests, etc. It was almost as though the author threw 5 books into one. I wouldn't recommend this book at all.

Jennifer McMahon writes books that are difficult to pigeonhole into one specific genre. This is one of the reasons that I am always drawn to her titles. This particular one has many different elements: romance, mystery, thriller, and a hint of the supernatural. I loved the atmospheric setting and the creepy feel of the story, as well as the quirky characters.